1. Technical Field
Embodiments disclosed herein are related to push notifications on mobile devices. In particular, embodiments disclosed herein may allow a merchant or location to use a user's interaction with the merchant or location via a third party as a proxy to send push notification to the user's mobile device.
2. Related Art
Due to the increase in use of mobile devices and the improved networking and online capabilities of these mobile devices, merchants having physical “brick and mortar” storefronts may also have an online presence to enhance a user's experience while at the physical storefront. Users may be able to interact with the merchant or location via a third party that facilitates the interaction. The interaction may include offline and online interactions, such as performing online transactions, checking in to receive advertisements, specials, and other information, and the like. For example, a third party such as PayPal, Inc. of San Jose, Calif., may facilitate user interaction with the merchant or location by providing options for selecting, ordering, and paying for items, providing convenience for both the user and the merchant. Additional interactions may be facilitated by other third parties or the same third party, and may include sending advertisements, specials, offers, and the like. While the third party may be able to provide information to the user based on an interaction, the merchant or location may be limited to providing information to users via an e-mail, short messaging service (SMS) message, or voice call, all of which require the user to provide personal information to the merchant or location. Certain mobile operating systems allow for third parties to push notifications to a user's mobile device. However, these operating systems require that a specific application or “app” be first installed on the user's mobile device before allowing for push notifications. Since installing an app for each location or merchant that a user may visit may be time consuming and tedious, locations or merchants may not be able to conveniently send information to the users and, thus, may not be able to fully benefit from interactions facilitated by the third party.
In the drawings, elements having the same designation have the same or similar functions.